Voila - We're 4!

I want to detail what's been happening post-pregnancy for a while, as when I went into this for the second time, I had almost forgotten about how this part of having a new baby felt. I also wanted to document some of the thoughts and feelings - things that go on when going from a family of 3 to a family of 4. It's a big transition, and we're just beginning.

I will also share the birth story of our newest member, Marin Eisley, and the growth of our first addition Jonas Rush.  Without further adieu, here are our two shining stars.

Voila - We're 4!

I want to detail what's been happening post-pregnancy for a while, as when I went into this for the second time, I had almost forgotten about how this part of having a new baby felt. I also wanted to document some of the thoughts and feelings - things that go on when going from a family of 3 to a family of 4. It's a big transition, and we're just beginning.

I will also share the birth story of our newest member, Marin Eisley, and the growth of our first addition Jonas Rush.  Without further adieu, here are our two shining stars.

Officially Overdue!

Well, my due date for #2 has officially come and gone, and I am still "with child" ;) On a positive note, I have been able to get a lot done over the last few weeks in preparation for my little one, and feel somewhat prepared for her arrival.


I also wanted to take a minute to talk about this pregnancy, and what has gone on during the 40 weeks. This will help me keep track of things for the future, and possibly serve as some help for others going through the pregnancy process. (WARNING - it's not all pretty!)

On April 27th, I got VERY sick - with flu-like symptoms and also realized that I was "late". My last period had started on March 23rd, and I was VERY regular. We had been hoping for another little on, so I was hoping I would get good news. I was in classes, full-time, and working at my son's daycare part-time. When I got the results back from my blood serum test, it was negative. DH and I had been anxious about the results, and our 2 home tests had shown up negative, but we were hoping for a positive from the bst, as it was supposed to be more sensitive and accurate. Because it was negative, we were a little discouraged, but knew it was just the beginning of our journey. We had a small window when having a LO would be the right timing, because I had just applied for Graduate school for Speech Language Pathology, and couldn't delay the strict and rigorous schedule of the program.

I was sick with morning-sickness-like symptoms (or flu) symptoms the first week of May, during Final Exams. Ugh! I knew the results from all of the tests had come back negative so far, but by the end of the week, I still hadn't started. I made an appointment with my OBGYN after discussing the delay, and he scheduled another test on May 6th. This time, the result came back...POSITIVE! My suspicions were confirmed, and I was so excited. I still had a few final exams, so I couldn't get "too" excited, and then of course I had to figure out how to tell DH.

For the time being, I contained my excitement and told DH that the results for the test would take a few days, and that I could expect to get them on Monday. Not telling him was SO difficult for me. The day I got the news, I also went to cafepress.com and ordered a shirt for my LO that said "I'm going to be a BIG Brother!" It came in that Friday. That Sunday, May 10th, was Mother's Day, and DH had planned to take me out to lunch after church, so I planned on surprising him with the news sometime that day. DH was in his Master's program, and also had finals that week, so I wanted to attempt to give him some time to finish his finals. Again, it was exceedingly difficult to concentrate on studying when I had such a BIG surprise inside.

Sunday finally arrived, and it ended up being a fantastic day. DH took me to my favorite restaurant, I had a new haircut, dress and makeup - and DS had on his NEW shirt - underneath a button-up, of course. Just before we entered the restaurant, I told DH that Jonas had a surprise for him. He had already taken him out of his car seat, so I told him to look at his t-shirt. DH saw the first few words on the shirt, and didn't believe it. He turned to me with a HUGE smile and said, "What?" I told him, "Jonas is going to be a Big Brother", and DH just kept asking me, "Are you serious?" followed by "Congratulations!". I laughed and laughed, and reminded him he was due just as much Congratulations as I was. After church, and lunch, we decided to go to the park to take some pictures in the sunshine. We also grabbed our video camera to document our exciting news! What a perfectly beautiful day with my family!
Over the next few weeks I had to enroll in my Master's program, and figure out what they were going to do with the news I had to share with them. On the 28th of May, I had my first Ultrasound. It was thrilling to see our little Jellybean and watch the heart beating. My EDD up until that point had been Dec. 28th, but after my US it got pushed back to Jan.10th, 2010.

Thankfully, my program was VERY understanding of my pregnancy, and graciously worked with me to improvise my schedule. I was able to extend my 2 year program into 3, and take only a portion of the first year classes, around my due date. This was a HUGE answer to prayer, as I was fully prepared for them to just tell me, "Thanks for applying, we'll look forward to your application again next year". Classes began August 31st, and my classmates met me for the first time as the pregnant lady in class. Most of the students in my program are newly-married and only 2 other girls have children. It did make classes challenging, but I ended Finals week on Dec. 18th, just in time to reach 37 weeks.

At 13 weeks, I was still not experiencing much in the way of pregnancy symptoms. While I was thankful, I was also a bit concerned. I was nervous about what that could possibly mean, and I immediately started praying that I would experience something. People kept reminding me to be thankful, and trust me, I was, but I was also slightly concerned. Well, that week, my prayers were answered in the form of excruciating intestinal blockage. Yes...I was severely constipated, for several weeks. It was uncomfortable, to say the least. I felt like I had food wedged up to the top of my esophagus. I was taking stool softeners, and prenatals at the time. My Colace softeners have been a constant for this pregnancy after my experience with my 1st pregnancy. They are a life-saver! I could only eat a few bites of food at a time, before feeling completely full - but I was also still hungry. It was a very strange sensation. This uncomfortable stage, fortunately didn't last too long (although at the time it felt like forever!).

After that stage finally ended, I enjoyed a VERY comfortable pregnancy. I wasn't as large as I was with #1, and didn't experience the pain and constant pressure below. I did experience some pains associated with my pelvic bones stretching, fairly severe round ligament pain, and some acid reflux in my third trimester. Due to round ligament pain, some days walking was excruciating, but with the exception of that, this pregnancy has been very kind to me. My first pregnancy was completely different, I think mainly due to the fact that I was working in a very busy office full-time until 2 days before I had my LO. My body took it a little harder, and I got enormous. This time, people keep commenting that I am small, but I have gained about the same amount of weight 35-40lbs. I am just carrying this baby differently. I feel like in the last couple of weeks, I have really gotten bigger though, the baby must be hitting a BIG growth spurt.

This pregnancy I only had 2 official ultrasounds. One early US and one around 20 weeks. I also got a 3D ultrasound at a local technology center a few weeks later. Unfortunatly, the only news we got was that the technicians "did not see boy parts". The baby's legs were crossed both times, so we're going with the presumption that we're having a girl. We're very excited, and although we've had a hard time determining her name, we think we've made a decision finally. Everything will be revealed very shortly. We are approaching our baby's birthday with great anticipation. Jonas is going to make a fantastic Big Brother, and he is thrilled about welcoming his new baby sister (or brother) into the world. Clint and I could not be more excited, and are anxious to find out how and when everything will unfold.

(Below is an not so gorgeous pic of me at 40 weeks!)
We are so blessed and thankful to be welcoming another little one into our family. We can't wait to meet you - hopefully soon!!! Your due date was yesterday, so we hope you decide to join us this week!